When Hackers Say Goodbye
by KESwriter
Summary: AU:Penelope Garcia and Barbara Gordon: Two genius hackers/information brokers no one knows about beyond their spheres of associates. But the rules of reality don't exactly apply to the tech world. This is Barbara's one chance to say goodbye to someone.


AU:Penelope Garcia and Barbara Gordon: Two genius hackers/information brokers no one knows about beyond their spheres of associates. But the rules of reality don't exactly apply to the tech world. This is Barbara's one chance to say goodbye to someone.

This is a one-shot about a pair of characters in different genres not many people connect the dots to. They both have such similar roles in their specific genres, but the demographics are so different. This is a story about one character that I thought was cute to the point of annoying at times, that I now respect as being a vital member of the team. This is essentially my farewell story to a character who has been re-booted in a way that makes me truly hate "The New 52."

I own none of the characters associated with DC or Criminal Minds.

When Hackers Say Goodbye

Sometimes members of the FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit wonder how technical analyst Penelope Garcia is able to track down information so quickly. How she is able to hack into networks without being noticed and finding the key piece of data that leads the team to finding the UnSub just in time to save someone.

The same can be said of Barbara Gordon. Confined to a wheelchair, she is one of Batman's most trusted allies. She is a master strategist and is able to get her best associates to the right locations. Even with all her informational prowess, her friends and fellow heroes still wonder what other resources she might have that she refuses to talk about.

The answer crosses the barriers of reality. These are two women who live and breathe computer code. Sometimes they go digging into the deepest depths of the cyber information universe. And somewhere along the way they found each other.

…

At first they were just two cyber hackers working late at night in their own timelines. They were both looking for random pieces of information that might help with their own "side jobs" that had little to with their regular responsibilities. They became aware they both had pieces of the same puzzle and decided to share and were able to find the answer. As a result they decided to keep in touch by communicating in this pocket of cyber space to discuss data puzzles that no one else seemed to understand.

Over time they became comfortable enough to share more information about their identities to one another. "Baby Girl Hacker" and "Oracle" began to trust each other enough to share information relating to problems that involved less "net speak" and more physical world terms. It didn't take long for two genius hackers to come to the same conclusion: They were both from alternate realities.

Garcia was the one who figured it out first. In her version, "Oracle" was the code name for Barbara Gordon, the former Batgirl and now information coordinator for a team of mostly female vigilantes known as the Birds of Prey. In her reality this was a comic book series. Garcia was over the moon once Barbara confirmed that her suspicions were correct. But Garcia was also smart enough to keep this to herself. Who would honestly believe she could communicate to a comic book character?

It took Barbara a little longer to figure out where Garcia was from. Barbara didn't watch as much TV and it was until Dinah, The Black Canary "borrowed" one of her screens to watch a show featuring a woman wearing cutesy colorful jewelry surrounded by computer screens. It was an FBI drama about a team of profilers who tracked criminals with the help of a tech analyst based in Quantico. Barbara cursed herself for not figuring it out sooner. She decided to keep this information to herself also. She hated the idea of people learning that she sometimes sought help from a government of any universe.

Neither tried to think much about the fact that lived and worked in universes where they were considered fictional characters. They both reasoned that the world of computer codes and cyber navigation wasn't confined to one single dimension. The fact was that they were smartest tech analysts in their worlds and when they worked together, they helped people.

…

It was late one night when Penelope Garcia decided to return to her office. She had just returned from working a case in the field and needed to be surrounded by her own screens full nothing but letters and numbers and no pictures of mutilated bodies. She was surprised to see a chat window open up when she logged on. It was from Barbara, Oracle. She never used chat windows where actual language could be written out.

Oracle: Hey Penelope. I really need to talk to someone.

Penelope was even more alarmed. They never used their real names.

BabyGirlHacker: Barbara, what's going on?

Oracle: What would you do if you were able to regain something you really wanted? But it came with a heavy price?

BabyGirlHacker: What do you mean?

Oracle: What is something you have always wanted? Be it something physical or human?

Penelope thought for a moment. She wanted Derek Morgan to look at her as something more than just a sweet friend. For him to see her as more than just a plump, perky, angel. She wanted her parents back. She wanted to look like the woman people noticed because she was radiant, both inside and out.

BabyGirlHacker: Barbara why are you asking me all of this? I would give anything to look the beautiful woman I know I am on the inside. To have my parents back.

Oracle: But what about that team of agents who seem to care about you? Would you be willing to give them up?

Penelope hadn't thought of that. The idea of there being a give and take in these kinds of situations was a natural conclusion. She didn't want to think about the idea of losing contact with the people she thought of has her family. She shook her head.

BabyGirlHacker: Barbara why are you talking about this? Please tell me what is going on.

Oracle: Penelope I think I am going to get my wish.

Penelope could almost hear the conflicting emotions Barbara was feeling.

BabyGirlHacker: Barbara?

Oracle: Penelope my universe is changing. I think this is the last time you'll ever hear from me.

Suddenly a tear leaked down her face. Her fingers raced across the keyboard.

BabyGirlHacker: Barbara? NO!

Oracle: It was a pleasure getting to know you Penelope. You were a great ally and great cyber friend.

BabyGirlHacker: BARBARA!

Oracle: Goodbye BabyGirlHac

Barbara suddenly signed off. Penelope swore. She kept typing and tried to reconnect the feed. She lost track of time.

…

Penelope felt someone touching her shoulder.

"Baby girl did you sleep here again?"

She looked up. It was Derek Morgan. She looked at a monitor and noticed it was 8:00 a.m.

"What exactly are you doing here?" he asked.

"Working on a side project," she replied groggily. Then she remembered why she was here. Oracle-Barbara!

Ignoring Morgan's questions, she quickly logged onto the DC Comics website. What she saw made her cry and Derek Morgan had no idea why. One of the first pictures on the site was that of a red-headed young Batgirl. Next to the picture it read.

"Yes, it's really happening! Barbara Gordon is back as Batgirl – and she's going to have to face the city's most horrifying new villains as well as the dark secrets from her past."


End file.
